


I'll bloom a garden for you

by Mondisaster



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, First Meetings, Florist Iwaizumi Hajime, Fluff and Angst, Getting Together, IwaOi Week 2020 (Haikyuu!!), M/M, Minor Character Death, Mutual Pining, Tattoo Artist Oikawa Tooru, Tattoos, just light angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-01
Updated: 2020-12-01
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:21:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,293
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27818941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mondisaster/pseuds/Mondisaster
Summary: Iwaizumi Hajime loves his job more than anything. Or at least he did before Oikawa Tooru crossed through that door and into his life.
Relationships: Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru
Comments: 29
Kudos: 90
Collections: IwaOi Week 2020





	I'll bloom a garden for you

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, everyone! This was a one-shot that was living on my mind and finally, I could pull together a part of it. Hope you enjoyed! This is for the first day of Iwaoi week. I took the "Tattoos" and "mutual pining" prompts for this!
> 
> Special thanks to bigbadw0lf and Bcain17 for beta read this for me! And Sandy for her comments and support! You guys are the best!

It all started back in March. Iwaizumi Hajime was minding his own business, making sure the batch of sakurasou was blooming perfectly with the coming of spring. 

He loved how the flowers in the shop seemed to come to life during the spring. Their colors were more vibrant and he could swear their petals were more velvety.

Iwaizumi had grown up around all kinds of flowers. His parents had owned the shop since before he was born, so his first memories were full of colors and sweets smells. His grandma used to do Ikebana with him too. So he had never imagined his life away from the flowers, even if he had never had a garden for himself.

He had been surrounded by flowers and vivid colors, memorizing every flower, and every smell. Iwaizumi knew what every flower meant and how to do a good Ikebana arrangement. 

But living in Shibuya, he had never had enough space to construct his own garden. That was one of his biggest dreams, not having fancy things or a lot of money, just being able to have his own garden full of flowers and all kinds of trees, especially sakura ones. 

He loved the sakura season, so beautiful in the ephemeral spectacle of it. While they only bloom beautifully for a small amount of time, the vision of their silky petals engraved into his memory made it worth it, like the memory of his grandma's cookies or a first kiss. Something that didn’t last forever but that was impossible to forget. 

Iwaizumi was finishing arranging the flowers near the window so that his customers could appreciate the flowers in their best moment when he saw Oikawa Tooru entering the shop for the first time. 

His initial thought was that this man was gorgeous.

Oikawa was wearing something that would turn out to be his signature outfit: black trousers, a white shirt, and a teal coat. He removed his sunglasses as he closed the door behind him, making the little bell sounds again, and smiled at Iwaizumi.

Iwaizumi could bet that that smile could enchant anyone, but to him, it seemed extremely fake so he frowned.

Oikawa walked over to him and winked, resting one of his hands on the wooden table in the center of the shop, keeping that big grin on his face and running his other hand through his perfectly wavy hair.

“Hey, pretty boy, are you the owner of this lovely place?”

His second thought of Oikawa was that he was an asshole. But Sugawara was out buying coffee, and now he had to deal with this idiot.

“Can I help you?” Iwaizumi muttered, trying to ignore the heat on his cheeks. He didn’t know if it was because he was embarrassed or just angry at this stranger's nerve to call him  _ ‘pretty boy’. _

“Actually, I hope you can.” The man in front of him looked at him from head to toe until his gaze fell on the label on his chest, where his surname was embroidered. “Iwaizumi-san, right?”

Iwaizumi just nodded and prayed that Sugawara would be back soon before he punched this potential customer in the face, wiping that smirk off his lips.

“You’re a man of few words, right, Iwa-chan?” Iwaizumi scowled at that nickname. How on earth could you be this forward with someone you just met?

“Don’t call me that,’’ he snapped, “My name is Iwaizumi.” 

“Well, if you tell me your first name, I’ll stop calling you that.”

“You don’t need my name to buy flowers.”

“Well, here’s the deal, Iwa-chan,” the bastard emphasized the nickname with a sing-song tone, “I don’t want to buy flowers, not now, anyway.”

“Well, then what the hell do you want?” There it was. Iwaizumi was starting to lose his cool. Although he wasn’t the kind of person who was comfortable around other people, he tried his best to be patient and helpful to all his clients. He didn’t have the natural charisma of Sugawara but he had a good amount of patience; he did Ikebana every single day. It was just... that this man knew how to get into his head and made his already frazzled nerves go wild.

“I take it that Suga-chan didn’t tell you, right?” The man sighed. Straightening up, he extended a long-fingered hand that Iwaizumi looked at suspiciously before taking and shaking. So, this guy had manners, after all. Not that Iwaizumi liked that. He was more accustomed to bow instead of shaking hands but a handshake wouldn’t change his life, right?

Oh, boy, how wrong he was. That first touch did, in fact, change his life.

The man smiled again. This time was a little smile, almost shy, and definitely more sincere.

“I’m Oikawa Tooru,” he said, with a charming tone. He had a firm grip on Iwaizumi’s hand and brushed his thumb on Iwaizumi’s skin. “I came here last week and spoke with Suga-chan. He told me he would talk with you about my request but I assume he didn’t take me seriously.”

Iwaizumi took his hand back, feeling the warmth leave him and noticing how smooth Oikawa’s hand had felt.

“Did you request a bouquet? Or maybe a flower arrangement? If you give me a second, I can check that out on the system.” Iwaizumi pulled out his phone to check, but just as he was going to unlock it, Oikawa set a hand over his, making Iwaizumi jump at his touch. He slapped Oikawa’s hand away with a quick movement.

Iwaizumi expected that to make the other man angry or at least feel annoyed, but Oikawa chuckled. Light and cheerful. The sound was so unfairly cute and it was a shame that it belonged to someone so irritating. It fit with his looks, though. Looking at him up close, Oikawa was handsome and fit. Iwaizumi shook his head. No, no he wasn't checking him out.

Oikawa took the small wooden bench that was stored under the center table and dragged it to sit on it. He looked like he knew the place like the palm of his hand and Iwaizumi asked himself how many times Oikawa had been in his shop when he was in the back doing the arrangements and bouquets. He would ask Sugawara about it later. 

“So what do you want, then?” Iwaizumi asked, crossing his arms in front of his chest. 

“You’re straightforward, I like that.” Oikawa rested his elbow on the table and set his chin on his hand before he spoke again. “I want your permission. I want to be able to stop by here now and then.”

"I'm not hiring at the moment.’’ Iwaizumi’s frown deepened. “I don't know what Sugawara told you but..."

Oikawa waved a hand at his face, causing Iwaizumi to push that hand away for the second time that day.

"How rude, Iwa-chan!"

"You were waving your stupid hand in my face. That’s rude."

"You interrupted me!"

“And you’re an asshole. Cut all this unbearable act of being enigmatic and just tell me what you want. I don't have time for your bullshit.”

Oikawa laughed again at the insult. It seemed like it was impossible to upset him, even if Iwaizumi was being rude to him.

“Be patient, Iwa-chan! I thought that the people who do Ikebana,” Oikawa pointed to the Ikebana arrangements that were decorating the counter, “were known for their patient nature. Are you sure you do it right?”

“Maybe it doesn't work when you are with a dipshit.” Iwaizumi smirked and Oikawa only grinned back. 

"This is going to be more fun than I ever imagined," Oikawa said.

Moving closer, he scratched near his collarbone, moving his shirt a bit, and revealing a glimpse of the ink on his skin.

"I'm a tattoo artist and I want to make a flower tattoo for someone special to me. So I want it to be perfect." Iwaizumi looked at him with an arched eyebrow, silently wondering how that was his problem. Oikawa seemed to understand because he smiled again. "The thing is, I have never done one and your flowers and arrangements are the prettiest I have seen in all Tokyo so far. I want to come here to practice my artistic skills on paper before doing it in someone else's skin. What do you say, Iwa-chan? Would you let me crash into your shop every now and then?" His voice was earnest.

Iwaizumi wanted to say no. He liked to work in silence and even if Sugawara wasn’t the quietest person to work with, he respected Iwaizumi's quiet hours in the morning and chatted with the customers in a reasonable voice volume. And Oikawa seemed to be the chatty type. The  _ loud _ chatty type. The kind of person that would ask endless questions and maybe even sing when he was doing his job. Frankly, Iwaizumi didn’t appreciate loud people when he was working on a new request. 

Despite all that, he found himself saying, “Fine, but you have to treat us with lunch when you come by. And you can’t annoy my clients.”

He wanted to say no. However, something had made him say yes. He wasn’t sure if that had been the best or worst decision of his year. Maybe both.

“You offend me, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa said, a hand on his chest. Oh, he was the overdramatic type too. “I can assure you that no one will notice my presence here. Maybe only you.”

And Oikawa had kept his word on that. 

After that first conversation and a lot of laughter from Sugawara, Oikawa returned with milk bread and coffee the next time he stopped at the shop. Asides from the food, he was carrying a little bag where he had his notebook and pencils. He chatted briefly with Sugawara as if they were old friends. 

Oikawa winked at Iwaizumi every time he caught sight of him.

However, Oikawa was surprisingly quiet at first, despite their first encounters. He just walked all around the back room, where most of the flowers were, and kept staring at all of them while Iwaizumi worked on the request he had in the queue. Oikawa touched every petal, smelled every flower, and kept taking notes about colors and textures in complete silence. Iwaizumi was quite surprised by that if he was really honest. 

Iwaizumi hadn’t been expecting Oikawa to be serious about his request. But apparently, Oikawa was a very serious and moderately famous tattoo artist in Tokyo. Not that Iwaizumi had seen his Instagram account or anything, not at all. It was just that Sugawara had told him that. 

But Oikawa’s silence didn't last all day. At midday, he started with the questions, like a little kid who was just discovering the world. 

"Iwa-chan." Iwaizumi tried so hard to ignore him, but Oikawa kept insisting. "Iwa-chan, what it's this?"

"A flower. I thought you knew at least that." 

Oikawa let out a dry laugh. “Your sense of humor is gonna kill me because of how bad it is, Iwa-chan!" Oikawa stuck his tongue out at him. 

"And you have what? Five years old? Stop sticking your tongue out and just google it."

Oikawa chuckled and walked over to Iwaizumi to sit at his side, bumping their shoulders together in the process. "You're right, I can google all this but the main reason I’m here in the first place is that I want to know about flowers directly from an expert, Iwa-chan! I can’t believe I have to explain this to you.” Oikawa rolled his eyes.

"I thought you only wanted to draw flowers. You don’t need anything more than just see them." Iwaizumi paused his job and turned to look at him. Their faces were so close that he had to take a step back, which made the other man smile. 

"Well, yes, but I like to learn new things too. It helps to inspire me, you know?’’ Oikawa shrugged. “I love seeing beautiful things around me but I think that when you get to know every single detail of the precious things you find in your way, their beauty just blooms right in front of your eyes and makes it better.”

Iwaizumi felt a warmth creeping in his chest. Oikawa’s eyes were fixed on his, looking warmer yet a little darker than the first time he had seen them. For a moment, Iwaizumi could swear Oikawa was looking down to his lips but he discarded that thought. He cleared his throat, feeling it suddenly dry, and broke eye contact with Oikawa to return his attention to the arrangement in front of him.

Before he could say anything, Oikawa spoke up again.“Can you teach me how to do Ikebana too?”

"You should practice what you came for. Your client may want a very elaborate tattoo and you're here, distracting us."

"My client can wait, Iwa-chan! Now I'm enjoying what I'm seeing and I want to learn everything I can while I’m here. I promise you I'm fast at learning," Oikawa said, tone low as he leaned to whisper the words in Iwaizumi's ear.

Iwaizumi rolled his eyes and pushed his face away, making Oikawa laugh again. Maybe that petty tactic had worked before with other people, but Iwaizumi didn't fall for cheap tricks. Oikawa would have to work harder. Not that Iwaizumi was expecting that, of course not.

"If you stop now and let me work, maybe I can teach you something another day." 

"You’re the best, Iwa-chan!" Oikawa hugged him briefly, which startled him, and then got up to take his notebook. It was amazing how this guy didn’t have any respect for boundaries.

They returned to the silence in the room that afternoon.

Oikawa sat on the chair next to the door to start drawing something on his notebook but his gaze switched between Iwaizumi and the notebook in his hands. The flowers beside him were eventually forgotten as Iwaizumi felt those caramel eyes on him all the time Oikawa was with him.  
  


The next time Oikawa visited the shop, he successfully distracted Iwaizumi from his work. He started with a simple topic, asking about Iwaizumi's favorite flowers: sakuras and sakurasou. 

And Iwaizumi couldn't help but start talking about them. To his surprise, Oikawa was listening in complete silence with his gaze fixed on Iwaizumi as he talked about the meaning of the flowers, what their differences were, and all the random information Iwaizumi had about them. He loved to talk about flowers but didn't have the time (or public) to do it. He knew not all people found flowers as interesting as he did.

“You know, the only reason that Sakurasou isn’t as popular as Sakuras is because they only bloom in wet areas and around forests. Sakuras are all around the country in all the big parks and Tokyo is full of them.”

“So you don’t like Sakuras, Iwa-chan?” Oikawa asked before taking a sip of coffee. They were sitting in the backroom, shoulders pressed together. Iwaizumi had long forgotten the Sakurasou bouquet he was making before Oikawa arrived. 

“Oh, I love them. I just think we have a lot of beautiful things that deserve to be appreciated as well.” Iwaizumi shrugged.

Oikawa asked again, “So, tell me Iwa-chan, do you prefer sakuras or sakurasou?”

“Why do you want to know that?”

“I’m just curious.”

Iwaizumi’s eyes narrowed. The conversation had diverged so much now. It was okay that Oikawa had asked about both sakuras and sakurasous because people usually didn’t know much about Sakurasou. And he was there to learn about how to draw flowers but he was now questioning everything about them, eager to know more and more through Iwaizumi's words.

Sakuras were known worldwide. They were eye-catching and discreet at the same time. All the tourists had seen them in photos or animes. People were naturally drawn to them and loved seeing them flourish in parks and festivals—like an obligatory and impossible not to see attraction. The Sakuras were a bit like Oikawa, Iwaizumi thought. A beauty that remains etched in your memory; even if you have only seen it once, you want to see it again as soon as it is gone. A chaotic, messy spectacle but impossible to forget.

“It's just easier to watch Sakuras here in Tokyo. We have the whole city full of trees and festivals to see them.”

“But I didn’t ask that, Iwa-chan,’’ Oikawa protested. “I asked you which one do you prefer.”

“I can’t choose, idiot,” Iwaizumi growled. “I have memories of all these flowers. I grew up surrounded by them.”

“Can you tell me about it?”

“No,” Iwaizumi snarled and Oikawa pouted.

“One day, Iwa-chan, I’ll make you talk with me about that,” Oikawa declared, a big grin painted across his face. 

Iwaizumi rolled his eyes. “I thought you were here to finish your sketch, not to interrogate me.”

“Oh, Iwa-chan, I can easily do both. You don't have to be so serious all the time.’’ Oikawa huffed. “Look, your face already has wrinkles!”

“Bastard.” Iwaizumi punched Oikawa's arm, making him yelp. They immediately started wrestling in a friendly way, shoving and cursing each other, laughing whenever one of them made a funny comment or tickled the other. 

In just a brief amount of time, Iwaizumi had learned how to deal with Oikawa. His presence slowly felt natural, as if Oikawa had always been part of his life as well as the flowers around him.

Iwaizumi had even found himself enjoying the other man's questions and teasing. He was slowly getting used to working with Oikawa by his side, drawing the Ikebana or bouquet that Iwaizumi created and asking about the meaning of every single detail.

Every Monday and Friday, Oikawa was there from morning to dawn. It was something that had quickly become a routine between the two of them. Sugawara had even said that Iwaizumi was in a better mood every time Oikawa stopped at the shop. Iwaizumi was sure that Sugawara was insane.

But Iwaizumi couldn’t deny he was happy to share his love for his work and flowers with someone who listened to him without getting bored. On the contrary, Oikawa managed to ask more and more details, only interrupting him to ask if the colors of his sketches were correct or if he would like to have it inked on his skin.

“I’m not that fond of having ink on my skin,” Iwaizumi grumbled.

“And that’s a shame, Iwa-chan. You’d be my perfect canvas. If you ever change your mind, let me know, I’ll love to be your first one,” Oikawa said, winking at him and making Iwaizumi hit him in the head. 

Iwaizumi had learned a lot about Oikawa as well. How his smile, the genuine one, was smaller than the first smile Oikawa had flashed at him when they met that he had deemed correctly fake. How his laugh, his authentic laugh, was very different from the fake one he gave to strangers. He learned that Oikawa had always been good at drawing and he got his first tattoo when he was in high school: it was his old jersey number from his former volleyball team and his school’s motto. It was on his right shoulder. The little number one in a teal color and the kanjis that read ‘rule the court’ below.

Iwaizumi also got to know that Oikawa's first love had been volleyball and that he actually made it to the Japan team for the Youth World Championship when he was 18. But he had had a serious injury in his first year at college that took him out of the sports world. Oikawa had told him as much with a casual tone, like he didn’t care about that now, but Iwaizumi could note the nostalgia in his voice.

“Of course it was sad, Iwa-chan. I was losing the love of my life! But I'm not the kind of person who gives up easily. And I always said that if you’re gonna hit it, hit it until it breaks.”

“And what the hell does that mean, dumbass? Sounds stupid.”

“You’re stupid,” replied Oikawa, shaking his head, making his curly hair bounce a little which made Iwaizumi laugh at his pathetic come back. “So for that, I’m gonna explain to you my motto, because I’m so nice and your brain is so tiny.”

Oikawa dodged another hit from Iwaizumi before he kept talking.

“It means that if you have enough desire to do something with your life, you better be the best at that. And If volleyball wasn’t a life for me after all, the ink would be.’’ He seemed sure of his words. “I wanna leave something behind me, some kind of legacy. And just like flowers, you know, every drop of ink on someone’s skin means something.”

Of course, Oikawa was the kind of person who never gave up. After all, he constantly visited the shop because, even if Iwaizumi and Sugawara insisted that his drawings were amazing, Oikawa kept telling them that they weren’t perfect yet. He was always pushing himself to the limit, and Iwaizumi asked himself vaguely if he was like that when he practiced volleyball.

Their days were like that for a while. They talked and worked together, sitting beside the other.

Oikawa asked a million questions about his personal life and flowers. And Iwaizumi asked about the types of tattoos Oikawa did while he listened to Oikawa as he talked about his personal life. He heard Oikawa talk about his life back at Miyagi and how the prefecture was small for him, so he had moved to Tokyo to study college and had fallen in love with the city. Iwaizumi paid attention to the story of the first time he had a tattoo and messed up so badly that he had to do it twice to fix it.

“I was lucky that the boy found me charming, because any other persona would have beaten me up if I have messed up that badly!”

Oikawa knew how to charm people. At first, Iwaizumi had thought that Oikawa was just the act of a handsome guy with a charming smile and sweet-talking but he actually was very  observant of the people around him. Oikawa had managed to know what kind of coffee Iwaizumi took in the morning and also had managed to extract information from Sugawara to know that the two men enjoyed tofu from the restaurant across the street. So, Oikawa would treat them every Friday and come bearing agedashi tofu for Iwaizumi and super spicy mapo tofu for Sugawara.

Iwaizumi was also surprised by the fact that Oikawa listened to every word he said and remembered them later.

He learned that a month after they met when Oikawa entered the shop and smiled at Iwaizumi, who was watering the plants in the shop. Oikawa took him by the arm intending to drag him out of the store. But Iwaizumi resisted. Oikawa was strong, but he was a little stronger. Iwaizumi gripped the table in the center of the shop and freed himself from the grip of those long fingers.

"What the hell are you doing?" 

“You finished the requests for the week, right?

Iwaizumi frowned. “Yes. But that doesn’t explain what you’re acting like a psycho trying to kidnap me.”

Oikawa ignored him and yelled, "Suga-chan!" 

Sugawara's head peeked out from the back room with a big mischievous smile on his face. 

"Hello there, Oikawa! You don't have to yell, you know? I'm not that far. What's up?" 

"You can cover Iwa-chan for the rest of the day, right?" Oikawa asked, grabbing Iwaizumi's arm again while he gripped the table. At this point, Iwaizumi was very used to Oikawa’s touches and zero respect for his personal space.

"I can do that. What's the situation?" 

"Your boss is gonna take me to Shinjuku Gyoen to see the Sakura tree." 

"Really?" both Sugawara and Iwaizumi asked in unison. 

"Yes! So can you cover Iwa-chan today, Suga-chan?" Oikawa asked again.

Sugawara came to the front room and crossed his arms over his chest, touching his chin with a finger, as if he was pondering his answer.

“Oh, come, Suga-chan! I’ll buy you whatever you want for lunch next week,” Oikawa whined.

“That doesn't sound like a deal to me.”

“Okay, fine, I'll get you the phone number of Dai-chan!”

“Who the fuck is ¨Dai-chan¨?” Iwaizumi asked, turning his head towards Sugawara. His co-worker had his mouth slightly open in shock but he easily grinned after a couple of seconds.

"You can't say the man doesn't know how to negotiate, Iwaizumi." Sugawara laughed and nodded to Oikawa. "He needs fresh air, so take him with you. I'll close the shop today so don't worry about it."

“Dai-chan will love you, Suga-chan!” Oikawa winked at Sugwara’s red face and turned to face Iwaizumi. “Come on, Iwa-chan! You told me that the best moment to see the Sakuras bloom was early April so come with me.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Don’t be a liar, Iwaizumi. Have fun for one day,” Sugawara chimed in, earning a glare from Iwaizumi.

Sugawara raised his arms in surrender and walked away, back to the storage room.

When Iwaizumi turned to look back at Oikawa, he couldn’t say no to his demand. It was like he was incapable of denying anything to Oikawa. He sighed, frustrated. He barely knew the man!

“Fine,” Iwaizumi growled. “Let me go change and we can go now.”

It would be a lie to say that Iwaizumi was not thrilled about going to Shinjuku Gyoen to see the Sakura bloom. When he was a child, he used to go with his grandmother and parents. Then, in his adolescence, he got to go with some of his friends or his dates. Iwaizumi had even confessed once under the shower of pink petals in the park near his highschool.

But for some reason, walking alongside Oikawa to Shinjuku felt totally different. Different in a good way. Iwaizumi felt comfortable next to Oikawa and he could tell that Oikawa felt the same. They spoke as if they were old friends, their senses relaxing as if they had been waiting for that presence by their side all their lives.

They arrived at the Shinjuku Gyoen after a walk filled with cheerful chat from Oikawa, teasing from Iwaizumi, and when their knuckles brushing as they walked, Iwaizumi's heart beat a little faster than normal.

Just as they expected, the garden was packed with locals and tourists ready to watch the petals rain on them as they relaxed or had picnics on the green grass and pleasant weather.

"Come on, Iwa-chan! Let's go this way."

Oikawa took Iwaizumi's hand and pulled him into the large spot where most of the sakura trees were. 

They walked around the park. Oikawa was giggling like a little boy and Iwaizumi found himself smiling at his antics.

Oikawa asked about the different trees and flowers that were in the Shinjuku Gyoen and Iwaizumi answered pretending to be annoyed but internally, he was glad to answer every question Oikawa had. After all, he loved to talk about it and had learned to enjoy the attention Oikawa gave him when he talked passionately about plants and flowers. 

They walked around the garden until Oikawa took his hand again, sending shivers down Iwaizumi's spine.

He took him to the shade of a sakura tree. It was a bit further away from the others but still had a bed of petals at its feet. At that moment, Oikawa took a tablecloth out of his backpack —Iwaizumi hadn't noticed that Oikawa was carrying a backpack—and spread it on the floor, making an exaggerated gesture to indicate that he should take a seat. Iwaizumi rolled his eyes at him but sat down anyway. They had enough space, but were leaning against the tree trunk, impossibly closer to each other.

Oikawa took off his coat. He was wearing a t-shirt and it allowed Iwaizumi to see that his left arm was almost full of colorful tattoos. Although he had already caught a few glimpses of ink when Oikawa was fixing his coat at the shop, he had never seen them complete until now.

He also noticed three in particular: the tail of a koi fish surrounded by waves that disappeared under his shirt sleeve, a crown with various numbers surrounding it and finally a kanji on his wrist that said ‘dauntless’.

Oikawa caught him watching and smirked, lifting his left sleeve to discover the rest of the koi fish tattoo.

"You're always curious about them," Oikawa simply said, "I don't have too many tattoos like you have flowers, but these are meaningful to me."

Iwaizumi stayed quiet, waiting for Oikawa to keep talking. It was true that Oikawa was talkative, and he had already told his lost dream of becoming a pro volleyball player but he had never talked about anything else besides his first tattoo. 

"I tattooed this one," Oikawa pointed to the koi fish, "when I knew that I couldn't play volleyball anymore. At least not at a professional level. It's a personal reminder that volleyball didn't define me. And because it means independence, perseverance, and good luck."

Iwaizimu looked at Oikawa's face. He didn't look sad, he had a nostalgic look in his eyes, but his lips were curving in a little smile. Some sakura petals were falling on his hair and Iwaizumi remembered the first thought he had about Oikawa Tooru.

He was beautiful. 

"This one," Oikawa continued, pointing to the crown surrounded in numbers,"is for the last great team I ever had: my high school team. Remember that our motto was ´rule the court´? " Iwaizumi nodded and Oikawa let out a brief laugh. "One boy from another team used to call me `The Great King´ so my friends use that nickname to tease me. So I tattooed this in their honor. The number is their jersey numbers."

Iwaizumi was a little surprised. He didn't expect Oikawa to be that sentimental about his friends and volleyball. But Oikawa Tooru was full of surprises.

"And this one," Oikawa laughed again, stroking the kanji on his wrist, "is a weird coincidence. But I did this myself a week before I met you."

"Why is it a coincidence?"

"Hajime," Oikawa murmured, lifting his gaze to look at Iwaizumi, who sucked in a breath. He didn't know how Oikawa knew his first name when he hadn't told him yet. The question may be clear on his face because Oikawa explained, "Suga-chan told me your given name last week. Did you know that if you combine Tooru and Hajime’s kanjis you form ´dauntless´?"

Oikawa was leaning his head towards Iwaizumi like he was about to kiss him and Iwaizumi didn’t react. He was losing the ability to move or speak some coherent thought. He was only thinking about how hard Oikawa had crept into his heart and mind. About how bad he wanted to kiss him. Iwaizumi was expecting the crash of lips until his cellphone rang and the moment was suddenly lost.

Oikawa sighed and pulled his head back, rubbing a hand into his hair as Iwaizumi answered the phone. He was expecting it to be Sugawara with some dumb question. In hindsight, it would’ve been better if it had been Sugawara with anything. 

Iwaizumi listened to his father's voice through the phone. He only could process a few words. His mother. An accident. JR Tokyo General Hospital. Iwaizumi felt how his heart that was beating fast on his chest now dropped into the pit of his stomach. 

As soon as Iwaizumi ended the call, Oikawa asked, “Iwa-chan, are you okay? You are pale! Did something happen?” 

“My mom…”

Oikawa’s eyes widened and he jumped to help Iwaizumi stand up, offering a hand. 

He needed something to hold on to when everything seemed like a nightmare.

“Where, Iwa-chan?” Oikawa whispered.

“JR General hospital.”

“That’s not so far away. Let's take a cab there.”

“Are you coming with me?”

Oikawa was still grabbing his hand so he gave it a little squeeze. “Of course, Iwa-chan. I can’t leave alone right now.” 

They ran from the garden to the street to get a taxi. Iwaizumi never let go of Oikawa's hand in the way, he needed something to keep him anchored to reality. He needed to convince himself that this was happening. And, above all, that he wasn’t alone.

The seven minutes to the hospital were the longest in Iwaizumi's life. He could only remember Oikawa's thumb stroking his hand, drawing circles on his skin. Even when they arrived at the hospital and they got a strange look from his father, Iwaizumi did not let go of Oikawa's hand.

"Oikawa Tooru," Oikawa introduced himself to his father after the doctor told them that he would keep them informed. "Nice meeting you, Iwaizumi-san."

"I wish I had met you in a better situation, Tooru-kun," replied his father, shaking Oikawa's hand and leaving them alone seconds later, excusing himself to go get a coffee.

Oikawa sat down next to Iwaizumi, taking his hand again.

"I prefer the sakura flower."

"What?"

"When we met, you asked me which flower I preferred. I prefer sakura. They are my mother's favorites. When I was a child, we always dreamed of having enough space for a garden and having our own sakura tree. I promised her that one day we would have it, I guess I failed in that promise, no?"

“Oh, Iwa-chan, I wish I could give you a whole garden,” whispered Oikawa, hugging Iwaizumi as he cried into Oikawa’s shoulder.

After two weeks in which Oikawa was by his side in the hospital almost every day, Iwaizumi's mother passed away. Iwaizumi felt grateful for Oikawa and Sugawara. Sugawara had been almost in complete charge of running the shop and Oikawa's presence was a balm in all that nightmare. After his mother’s funeral, Oikawa stopped by the shop every day too, breaking his routine to check Iwaizumi’s mood and make him eat something. 

Sometimes, Oikawa even helped in the shop so Iwaizumi could focus on doing the Ikebana while Sugawara helped him with the bouquets. Oikawa was—to none’s surprise—good with people. He repeated everything Iwaizumi had told him about the flowers and their meaning. Iwaizumi couldn’t help but feel a wave of pride and  affection towards Oikawa for taking the time and heart to help him. 

Until Oikawa stopped showing all of a sudden. 

Iwaizumi realized then that he didn’t have Oikawa’s number. He had grown so used to Oikawa always showing up at the shop that Iwaizumi never asked for his number. 

Sugawara insisted that maybe he had his schedule full of late appointments. Iwaizumi insisted that he didn't care. And they both knew that the other was lying.

Maybe he had gotten bored of Iwaizumi. Or maybe Oikawa no longer wanted to take care of him. After all, he had only come into Iwaizumi's life because he needed something from him. 

Perhaps Oikawa had made the famous flower tattoo for his special someone—Iwaizumi remembered that he had a special someone—and he no longer needed to be in the store. If that was the case, the best solution was to forget about that man that had collided into his life without a warning, making Iwaizumi think of him every time he saw the flowers around him. 

Iwaizumi remembered every question asked, the stupids jokes, the stunning sketches on Oikawa’s notebook and every time Oikawa closed his eyes to smell the flowers Iwaizumi showed him. 

_ Did you know that if you combine Tooru and Hajime kanjis it forms ´dauntless´? _

Iwaizumi kept remembering Oikawa’s words. The warmth feeling of his body close to his and that face leaning towards him, ready to kiss him… 

Iwaizumi shook his head. Oikawa was gone. He had walked away and Iwaizumi had to accept that and move on.

After the second week in which he didn’t have any news about Oikawa, Iwaizumi tried not to think a lot about him. But he failed miserably. He hated to admit it, but he got used to having Oikawa around. To hear his voice and tease him. To touch his hand and hear his laugh. Oikawa had got into his life like the sakura season: had only bloomed into his life for a short amount of time, filling it with colors to disappear afterward. 

He was just left with the memory of him engraved in Iwaizumi's mind and heart.

By the third week, Iwaizumi didn’t expect anything. Until he heard that familiar voice one morning. 

“Yahoo, Suga-chan. How are you? Is Iwa-chan here? I have a surprise for him!”

Iwaizumi clenched his fist around the flower in his hand with excessive and unnecessary force, breaking the stem and cursing under his breath when the flower fell onto his hand. 

So, now he showed his face. That asshole. How dare he!

“Oikawa, I don’t think you should be here. Iwaizumi...” Iwaizumi heard Sugawara warning Oikawa.

But of course, the cheeky bastard didn’t listen and made his way to the back room. 

“Iwa-chan! I have great news…”

“What the hell are you doing here?” 

Iwaizumi didn't stand up from his chair. He didn't even look at Oikawa. He knew that if he saw his face, he'd want to launch himself to punch Oikawa.

“Iwa-chan, are you upset?” Oikawa asked, walking onto Iwaizumi. He stopped when Iwaizumi raised a hand to signal him not to take another step closer.

“What do you think, Shittykawa? Of course I'm upset with you.” Iwaizumi lifted his gaze, a grimace on his face. “You fucking disappeared without a fucking word. I was worried for you at first. I didn’t have how to reach you and you didn’t even think about that. You could have at least said goodbye, you know? I thought you were tired of me or you had died. And I didn't have how to know if either of those were true.”

Oikawa ignored him and walked over to sit besides him, laying his hand on Iwaizumi’s forearm.

“I’m sorry, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa spoke with a low tone, like a kid that had been caught in the middle of a mischief. “I didn’t think about that, you are right. I’m an asshole. And you can kick me out of your life if you want to. But can you come with me first?”

Iwaizumi didn’t meet his eyes. He was angry but also relieved to see Oikawa again. He still wanted to punch him. But, like the time they had met, Iwaizumi couldn't say no to Oikawa Tooru. 

“Fine. I’ll go with you.” Iwaizumi signed and Oikawa smiled at him, like he had won a gold medal. 

Iwaizumi got up and headed for the door, not even bothering to change his clothes. Seeing that Oikawa was still sitting, he glanced over his shoulder to hurry him.

"Come on, I don't have all day."

"So eager, Iwa-chan," Oikawa teased him, earning only a glare from Iwaizumi. "But I want to see that frown disappear from your face when you see my surprise!"

Oikawa got up as well and walked over to Iwaizumi, grabbing his wrist to drag him out of the shop after yelling at Suga that he was in charge.

Oikawa dragged him across the streets, dodging people and ignoring Iwaizumi’s questions about where they were heading.

He just muttered an excited, "You'll see soon, don't be so noisy, Iwa-chan."

Iwaizumi gave up and just let himself be dragged by that man that made him crazy. In every sense of the word. They walked a couple of streets, leaving behind Shibuya and walking into Shinjuku. Oikawa stopped until they reached a small business named ‘Aoba’.

“This is my studio, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa informed him with a proud smile on his face, “Now you can decide if you want to enter with me or walk away. You can always find me here just as I know how to find you.”

“You can give me your number, asshole.” Iwaizumi rolled his eyes and Oikawa's smile widened,

“And I plan to do more than that, Iwa-chan. But first, you have to close your eyes before you enter!”

Iwaizumi huffed. “If this is a joke, I swear…”

“It hurts me you think that badly of me, Iwa-chan.” Oikawa shook his head. “Pretty please? Trust me.”

And against his better judgment, Iwaizumi trusted on him. He closed his eyes and let Oikawa guide him inside. Iwaizumi realized he trusted too much in someone who had been missing for three weeks without saying a single word.

"Okay, Iwa-chan, you can open your eyes now."

In front of him was a largestained glass window. It was full of drawings of all the flowers that Iwaizumi had in the storage room of his store and those that he didn't have, but that he had told Oikawa about. Flowers of all colors, arranged by colors and sizes, and framed with two sakura trees at the top, their branches tangling until they became one. And in the lower right corner, there was a single sakura petal with the kanji ‘ _ dauntless’ _ printed on it.

Iwaizumi observed every detail of the stained glass window, amazed with the talent that Oikawa had, not only to make drawings but to reflect each color so vividly, so much so that each flower seemed to be alive within the painting. Each petal was full of texture and so much dedication.

When Iwaizumi turned around, he noticed that Oikawa didn't have his coat on. And that a new tattoo now adorned his right arm. A thin branch of fully bloomed sakuras encircled his arm from wrist to elbow. Where the doll branch began, there was the kanji for ’Hajime’.

“I don’t have space nor money to build you a garden. Not yet, anyway.” He smirked. “But I promise you that I’ll always find the way to bloom flowers for you, Hajime,” whispered Oikawa, taking a step closer to Iwaizumi to hold his hand. 

“You are so cheesy, Tooru,” replied Iwaizumi, rolling his eyes. But he pulled Oikawa’s hand to break the distance between them to take his face on his hands and kiss him. There were no fireworks or a choir of angels. The kiss was like being at home: loved and comfortable. Naturally, like they were meant to be together. Iwaizumi felt only comfortable in the arms of the annoying man who had turned his world upside down and whom he knew he would love more than any flower.

When they pulled apart, lips swollen and eyes full of happiness, Iwaizumi was the first one to speak.

“The mysterious client was you, right? The one for whom you were practicing the flowers?"

Oikawa chuckled. “Well, yeah. At least at first. But then I wanted to paint something for you too. And since you didn't want a tattoo, I thought this may be better for you."

Iwaizumi leaned again, leaving another kiss on his lips and squeezing his hand.

"Hey, pretty boy, are you the owner of this lovely place?" Iwaizumi muttered against his lips making Oikawa laugh at his words and wrapped his arms around Iwaizumi's waist to draw him closer.

"Like what you see here, then?"

"Asides from the owner?” His lips pulled up in a smirk. “I think he said to me that he would love to get me my first tattoo. And I want to combine my new boyfriend's tattoo."

Oikawa’s smile grew impossibly wider before he kissed Iwaizumi again. 

Now, Hajime Iwaizumi couldn't imagine his life if Tooru Oikawa hadn't decided to stop by his shop to practice his flower designs.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you like it! Kudos and comments are always welcome! You can come and scream to me on twitter on @/monsweirdo


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